Recent content by KiRbY29869

Bleach water with detergent will do the trick. Just soak it for a day or two and grab a carboy brush and scrub anything stuck to the inside off. Rinse very well so you don't get bleach contamination and you be fine. I did this when I got two 6 gal. carboys for a buck a piece and have made a...

Hey BK I was just wondering how this one is coming along.

I really liked the way that Lalvin's KIV - 1116 or, some numbers, worked. It finished really smooth after about 5 months and really left a lot of the fruit flavors. I've never tried the Cotes des Blancs just because people said it leaves like a slickness on your tongue, I don't know if it does...

That looks very good. And what a difference. I had the same thing happen with a strawberry wine.

Nevermind the amount of lees in the bottom was very decieving. After racking it the carboy was filled up to a level that is fine. Maybe next time I'll rack it first before i worry about things that I don't have to do.

I've done it before and worked out pretty well. Let it sit on a cold floor or in a refridgerator fo about 2-3 weeks and it should be pretty well clear.

I think that I'm going to rack it and see where I am at after that. I wish that I had a 3 gallon carboy but I don't. If there isn't too much headspace I'll just use water and if there is a lot I'll use the sugar water. If I do use the sugar water route then I will be sure to post how that...

I saw a thread similar to this the other day but it didn't quite have the answer. I made a strawberry wine about a month and am going to be putting it into tertiary. There is a lot of lees in the bottom and am going to be about half a gallon shy of a full carboy. I'm not worried about losing...

I think that the seal should last for a while. When I was on vacation in the Outer Banks I saw a brand in the wine shop that was using those Zorks for all of their wine. (not sure what the name was)

I cover mine with a kitchen towel for the primary fermentation. I tie it around the top of my bucket and this keeps any flies and nats out but lets the must get plenty of oxygen during primary. The massive ferment keeps the wine from oxydizing. I read that this helps to breed those yeasties.

I'd say you probably had a fast ferment. A lot of my berry wines ferment really fast and are usually done or very close to done by secondary especially if you get busy doing something for a day or two. You can never know what ya got without a hydrometer though.

Yea the only wine that I let go naturally is my dandelion wine that gets made once a year. The guy I got the recipe off of said his dad did it that way and he's done it that way forever. I had some of his and decided I was going to do it that way too, cause it was damn good. My strawberries...

Adding the rum in there doesn't affect bottle carbing? Or are you force carbing?

I am planning on doing the same thing only blackberry, blueberry, raspberry, maybe a combination, and a traditional. I was thinking using a clover honey as the base because I don't know where to get good honey at a decent price around where I live. Should clover honey work fine?

I made a 5 gal. batch of strawberry from the same concentrate I think. I used vintners harvest 96. ounce can. And for some reason mine had a really tough time to get going to. I dont know if there is high acid in those or something but I followed the directions to a tee.